April 21 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rose a fifth day,
capping the longest rally for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index
since October, on signs earnings are improving. The ruble
slipped after a deadly clash in Ukraine, as gold and wheat fell.

The S&P 500 gained 0.4 percent to 1,871.89 in New York,
following a 2.7 percent advance last week. Ten-year Treasury
yields fell one basis point to 2.72 percent by 5 p.m. in New
York. The ruble lost 0.3 percent versus the dollar as the yen
dropped versus most major peers. Gold slid to a two-week low and
wheat futures slid 3.4 percent, the biggest drop in a year.

Netflix Inc. jumped in extended trading after reporting
better earnings than analysts estimated, while an index of U.S.
leading indicators rose the most in four months. Ukraine warned
that Russia may use a fatal shootout in the country’s east as a
pretext for invasion as an accord reached last week showed
little sign of taking hold. Markets in the U.K., Germany, Hong
Kong and Australia were closed for the Easter Monday holiday.

“All the fundamentals still line up that stock prices can
go higher,” John Fox, director of research at Fenimore Asset
Management in Cobleskill, New York, said in a phone interview.
“The few earnings that we’ve had so far have been coming in
pretty well.”

Netflix gained more than 6 percent after markets closed as
it reported better-than-projected sales, profit and subscriber
growth. The online video service also said it will raise prices.
Allergan Inc., maker of the Botox cosmetic treatment, soared 12
percent in extended trading after a media report that New York
hedge fund manager Bill Ackman and Valeant Pharmaceuticals
International Inc. are teaming up to bid for the drugmaker.

U.S. Movers

The S&P 500 jumped the most since July last week,
rebounding from a technology-led selloff, as earnings from
Morgan Stanley to Citigroup Inc. and Yahoo! Inc. surpassed
estimates and Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen reiterated the
bank’s commitment to supporting the economy.

Newmont Mining Corp. advanced 6.4 percent in normal trading
hours as it discussed a possible merger with Barrick Gold Corp.,
people with the knowledge of the matter said. Halliburton Co.
climbed 3.3 percent in a fifth day of gains after forecasting
profit growth for the second quarter. Athenahealth Inc. fell 6.9
percent after reporting quarterly earnings that missed
projections.

Earnings Analysis

Continued gains in the labor market, improvements in
consumer sentiment and strengthening demand are boosting
consumption among U.S. households. The Conference Board’s index,
a gauge of the outlook for the next three to six months, rose
0.8 percent after a 0.5 percent gain in February, the New York-based group said. The median forecast of 42 economists surveyed
by Bloomberg called for an advance of 0.7 percent.

More than 70 percent of the S&P 500 member companies that
have announced results this season have beaten analysts’ profit
estimates, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Analysts project
that earnings at S&P 500 companies increased 0.7 percent in the
first quarter, while revenue climbed 2.6 percent, according to
the average estimate.

The MSCI Emerging Markets Index dropped 0.1 percent,
snapping a three-day climb, while the Micex Index in Moscow
dropped 0.9 percent. The ruble retreated a second day versus the
dollar-euro basket used by Russia’s central bank to stem the
impact of currency fluctuations.

Ukraine Unrest

Russia’s Foreign Ministry blamed the Ukrainian nationalist
group Pravyi Sektor for violence which left at least three
people dead over the weekend, an allegation that Pravyi Sektor
denied in a statement. Viktoria Syumar, first deputy head of the
National Security and Defense Council in Kiev, said on her
Facebook page that Russia’s accusation and statements show it’s
preparing to invade Ukraine.

The discord adds to skepticism over whether Ukraine, the
U.S. and the European Union will be able to use an April 17
Geneva accord to encourage Russian President Vladimir Putin to
ease tensions that he says he’s had no role in creating.

The Shanghai Composite Index fell 1.5 percent amid
speculation that new initial public offerings and sales of
preferred shares by lenders will sap liquidity in the market.
India’s S&P BSE Sensex Index added 0.6 percent, advancing for a
second day.

U.S. debt climbed before the Treasury sells $96 billion in
coupon-bearing notes starting tomorrow. Ten-year Treasury notes
yielded 67 basis points more than their Group of Seven
counterparts last week, the most in four years, as the Fed
unwinds its bond-buying program while Japan and Europe consider
additional stimulus.

‘General Uncertainty’

“It’s general uncertainty, it’s the back-and-forth
headlines” on Ukraine, said Justin Lederer, an interest-rate
strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald LP in New York, one of the 22
primary dealers that trade directly with the Federal Reserve.

Gold slid 0.3 percent to $1,289.99 an ounce in the spot
market. The metal has pared its advance in 2014 as investors
assess prospects for further cuts to the Federal Reserve’s bond
buying program amid signs of recovery in the world’s largest
economy.

“It is very difficult for gold to sustain the panic that
makes it a good safe-haven trade,” Frances Hudson, a strategist
at Standard Life in Edinburgh, which oversees $294 billion. “I
see demand for gold remaining non-enthusiastic. Things are
looking better in the U.S. and Europe. It’s not that both these
economies are racing ahead, but they are gradually improving.”

Japan Deficit

The yen weakened 0.2 percent to 102.60 per dollar and lost
at least 0.1 percent against the euro, Swiss franc and Norwegian
krone. Japan’s trade deficit quadrupled from a year earlier to
1.45 trillion-yen ($14.1 billion) in March, larger than the 1.08
trillion yen gap projected by economists amid the weakest export
growth in a year.

“Japan’s trade deficit was much larger than expected, so
it helped to push the yen lower,” said Marito Ueda, senior
managing director at currency-margin company FX Prime Corp. in
Tokyo. “We’re likely to shift to a dollar-strength story from a
yen weakness story going forward as we start to see good data
from the U.S.”

Wheat fell on speculation that rains over the weekend may
have aided crops threatened by drought in the U.S., the world’s
biggest shipper. Rain should build across northwestern areas of
the Midwest over the weekend and push into central areas today,
according to MDA Information Systems LLC.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil climbed 0.1 percent,
rising a third day to reach $104.37 a barrel, the highest
settlement since March 3. Brent crude also gained, adding 0.4
percent to $109.94 a barrel, also a seven-week high.